MIAMI – June 5, 2019 – Cesar L. Alvarez, senior chairman of global law firm Greenberg Traurig, P.A., received the Harvard Business School Club of South Florida’s Leadership Award at the organization’s Leadership Dinner in Miami on May 29. The award is the club’s highest recognition for business and community leadership contributions to South Florida.
The Leadership Award is a long-standing tradition of established Harvard Business School Alumni Clubs in major cities around the world. Honorees are chosen based on their distinguished contribution to their community, reflected in a combination of unique leadership achievements and a strong commitment to philanthropy and community service.
“After a rigorous due-diligence process to pick our honoree, our Leadership Award selection committee unanimously chose Cesar L. Alvarez, a man who arrived in this country as a young Cuban refugee and worked his way up to becoming the architect and leader of one of the largest law firms in the world,” said Luis A. Zuluaga, president of the Harvard Business School Club of South Florida. “Cesar not only embodies the leadership values that we want to exalt, but he also has shown time and again an unwavering commitment to having a positive and lasting impact in our community.”
Alvarez previously served as Greenberg Traurig's chief executive officer for 13 years and executive chairman for more than three years. During his tenure as CEO, he directed the firm's growth from 325 lawyers in eight offices to approximately 1850 attorneys and government professionals in more than 36 locations in the United States, Europe, Asia and Latin America, including strategic alliances in Milan and Rome, Italy. Under Cesar's leadership, the firm was recognized as the fastest-growing law firm in the United States and is among the Top 10 law firms in the country.
Before taking the helm as CEO, Alvarez practiced securities, corporate, and international law for more than 25 years. Throughout his career, he has represented numerous public companies and served on the boards of directors of several publicly traded corporations and charitable organizations. He has been recognized nationally and locally for his professional, business, and charitable leadership. Alvarez has been honored as one of the "100 Most Influential Lawyers in America" by The National Law Journal in 1997, 2000, and 2006 (the last three editions), as one of the top most powerful Hispanics by PODER's Power Issue, and among "The 25 Best Latinos in Business," in Hispanic Magazine's Power Issue, both in 2008. He also has been honored by Chambers and Partners with its "Lifetime Achievement" Award and by the American Bar Association with its "Spirit of Excellence" Award.
Funds raised from the dinner honoring Alvarez will be used to provide scholarships for non-profit leaders to attend a special executive education program.
Alvarez was introduced at the event by Dave Lawrence, a longtime Miami civic leader and former publisher of The Miami Herald, who praised the leadership that Cesar has brought to the community.
“The topic tonight is leadership – what the first President Roosevelt wrote about as ‘to dare to do mighty things,’” Lawrence said. “I am quite certain that Teddy Roosevelt would admire Cesar Alvarez as much as you and I. I do not know anyone who better defines leadership than Cesar Alvarez.
It’s an honor to celebrate “a man who leads other people superbly and works alongside people so very well,” he said. “A man who helps build community and country and, most of all, a man who builds people.”
About Greenberg Traurig, LLP: Greenberg Traurig, LLP (GT) has more than 2,000 attorneys in 39 offices in the United States, Latin America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. GT has been recognized for its philanthropic giving, diversity, and innovation, and is consistently among the largest firms in the U.S. on the Law360 400 and among the Top 20 on the Am Law Global 100. Web: http://www.gtlaw.com Twitter: @GT_Law.